Iowa Hosts Michigan State Saturday Afternoon

Feb. 3, 2005

Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader

THE SETTING
After a mid-week break in the schedule, Iowa (15-5, 3-4) will host Michigan State (14-4, 5-2) Saturday, Feb. 5. Game time is 1:32 p.m. in Carver-Hawkeye Arena (15,500).

The Hawkeyes have been idle since a 82-57 win over Indiana last Saturday in Iowa City. The Spartans dropped an 81-68 contest to top-ranked Illinois Tuesday night in East Lansing after a 92-75 home win over Oakland Saturday night.

ON THE AIR
Radio: Iowa games are broadcast on the Hawkeye Radio Network. Gary Dolphin handles the play-by-play with color commentator Bob Hansen.

Television: ESPN Regional will carry the game to a network of stations throughout the Big Ten Conference viewing area, including KGAN in Cedar Rapids. Dick Bremer and Mac McCausland will call the action.

IOWA HISTORY
Iowa has played 2,330 games since beginning basketball in 1902. Overall Iowa’s record is 1,390-940 (.597). That includes an 869-304 (.741) record in home games, a 521-636 (.450) record in games away from Iowa City, a 660-649 (.504) mark in Big Ten games and a 275-78 (.779) record in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

IOWA IN CARVER-HAWKEYE ARENA
Iowa has compiled a 275-78 (.779) record in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Iowa is 130-65 (.667) in Big Ten games and 145-13 (.918) in non-Big Ten games. Iowa has drawn over five million fans for men’s basketball games since the arena opened in 1983. Iowa has posted a 67-23 (.744) home record under Coach Steve Alford, including a 42-4 (.913) mark in non-conference home games.

IN THE RANKINGS
Iowa is listed among teams receiving votes in both the Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today coaches polls. The Hawkeyes had been ranked for nine consecutive weeks, reaching as high as 14th in the Associated Press poll on Jan. 3. Iowa began the season receiving no votes in either poll. The Hawkeyes are 34th in the RPI rankings and 22nd in the Sagarin Ratings. MSU is ranked 10th in the coaches poll and 12th by the Associated Press.

IOWA OFF TO FAST START
With 12 wins in its first 13 games, Iowa enjoyed its best start under Coach Steve Alford. Iowa, in 2001, posted a 10-1 mark to start the season and ended the year with a 23-12 overall record. Iowa began both the 1997-98 and 1998-99 seasons with a 13-1 record.

Iowa’s nine-game win streak during non-conference action matched the best streak for an Iowa team under Alford, as the Hawkeyes opened the 2000-01 season with nine straight wins. The Hawkeyes also had six-game win streaks in 2003-04 and 2001-02.

Iowa has 12 non-conference wins (not including post-season) for the first time since 1988-89.

ILLINOIS START TIME MOVED UP
The start time of the Illinois at Iowa contest on Saturday, Feb. 19 has moved to 11:06 a.m. The contest was originally slated to begin at 11:17 a.m.

The game was originally selected as an ESPN Plus game to be telecast throughout the Big Ten area. The game will now be televised nationally on ESPN. The game will be shown on the usual and customary ESPN Plus regional outlets in Iowa and Illinois, and on ESPN throughout the remainder of the country.

IOWA COACH Steve Alford
Steve Alford (pronounced ALL-ford) is in his sixth season as the head coach at the University of Iowa and his 14th season as a college head coach. Alford holds a career record of 260-153 (.630), including a 104-76 (.578) record at Iowa, a 78-29 (.729) record in four seasons (1992-95) at Div. III Manchester College and a four-year record (1996-99) of 78-48 (.619) at Southwest Missouri State. Alford ranks fifth among Iowa’s head basketball coaches in career wins and he is 37-50 (.425) in Big Ten games at Iowa. Alford is 8-5 in the NCAA Tournament (3-2 in Div. I and 5-3 in Div. III) and 2-4 in the NIT.

Alford led Iowa to the 2001 Big Ten Conference Tournament title and into the second round of the NCAA Tournament in his second season with the Hawkeyes. Iowa earned a return trip to the title game of the Big Ten Conference Tournament in 2002 and advanced to the NIT in post-season play in 2002, 2003 and 2004. The Hawkeyes set a Big Ten Conference Tournament record with seven straight wins over two seasons (2001-2002) before a last-second loss in the first round of the 2003 tournament. Alford’s record in the event is 8-4 in his five seasons.

Alford led Southwest Missouri State to the NCAA Sweet 16 in 1999 and in 1995 Manchester advanced to the NCAA championship game before suffering its first defeat of the season.

Alford is a 1987 graduate of Indiana, where he led the Hoosiers to the 1987 NCAA title. Alford was a member of the 1984 U. S. Olympic team that earned the Gold Medal and he was the 26th player selected in the NBA Draft following his senior season. Alford played four seasons in the NBA before beginning his coaching career.

At Indiana, Alford started 120 of 125 games in four seasons. He served as team captain in 1987 when the Hoosiers were 30-4. Steve concluded his college career as Indiana’s all-time scoring leader with 2,438 points and he holds the Indiana record for career steals with 178. He was a consensus first team All-American and the Big Ten MVP as a senior.

Alford is a member of the Manchester College M Association Hall of Fame and the Indiana University Athletics Hall of Fame. In 2001 he was named one of the “Top 50 Athletes” in the history of the state of Indiana and was selected as a member of the 15-man Indiana University all-Century team. A year ago he was one of five players selected to ESPN’s Big Ten Conference Silver Anniversary team, honoring Big Ten players from the past 25 seasons.

Alford is 2-6 vs. Michigan State and Spartan Coach Tom Izzo.

MSU COACH TOM IZZO
MSU Coach Tom Izzo is in his 10th year as a college head coach, all at Michigan State. Izzo holds a record of 221-94. Izzo led the Spartans to the 2000 NCAA championship and to the Final Four in 1999 and 2001. MSU has won four Big Ten regular season titles and two Big Ten Tournament championships under Izzo while compiling a 25-9 post-season record. He has been named national Coach of the Year on three occasions. He has been a member of the Michigan State staff since 1983. Izzo is 12-3 vs. Iowa and 6-2 vs. Hawkeye Coach Steve Alford.

THE SERIES
Michigan State holds a 54-47 advantage over Iowa in the series that began with a 52-37 MSU win in 1938. The two teams split a pair of games in 2003, each winning at home, before the Spartans won 89-72 in East Lansing in the only meeting a year ago. The Spartans have won 12 of the last 15 and 15 of the last 19 meetings.

Iowa holds a 30-18 advantage in games played in Iowa City, including the last two meetings, after the Spartans had won three straight in Iowa City. Iowa scored a 68-64 win in January, 2003 when the Spartans last played in Iowa City. Overall the Spartans hold a 9-10 record in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Michigan State in 1983 won the first basketball game ever played in Carver-Hawkeye Arena and MSU’s nine wins in the facility equal the most by any Iowa opponent.

MSU WON ONLY MEETING
Michigan State used its size and depth advantage, and a hot shooting first half, in defeating Iowa 89-72 in East Lansing in the only meeting last season. The Spartans played 12 players in the first half alone, shooting 54.8% from the field in building a 50-35 halftime advantage. Iowa held an early 9-8 advantage before MSU scored eight straight points and never trailed again. Iowa closed to within four points, 28-24 with 6:45 left in the half, before the Spartans used another scoring run to build the halftime margin to 15 points. The teams played on even terms throughout most of the second half, before a late burst by Iowa cut the margin to 12 points, 78-66, with just less than four minutes to play. MSU quickly gained control from there in earning the win.

Iowa shot an even 50% from the field in the second half, but just 41.1% for the game. The Hawkeyes had their best shooting night of the season from the free throw line at 83.3% (20-24), but made just six of 21 (28.6%) three-point attempts.

Jeff Horner and Pierre Pierce led Iowa’s offensive attack with 21 points each. Horner made 7-11 field goal attempts, including 5-8 three-pointers. Greg Brunner added 10 points and a then career-high 13 rebounds as Iowa held a 36-32 rebounding advantage. Horner added six rebounds.

Paul Davis led the Spartans with 19 points and seven rebounds. The balanced attack also included 18 points from Kelvin Torbert, 15 from Chris Hill and 12 from Alan Anderson.

IOWA, MSU GAME NOTES

  • Michigan State (1999 and 2000) and Iowa (2001) have won three of the seven Big Ten Conference tournaments and they are two of the four league teams (along with Illinois and Ohio State) to appear in the championship game on more than one occasion. Michigan won the inaugural event in 1998, Ohio State won in 2002, Illinois won in 2003 and Wisconsin earned the title a year ago.
  • Michigan State shared the regular season Big Ten title in 2001 and Iowa won the Big Ten Tournament title. MSU won the only regular season meeting (in East Lansing) and the teams did not meet in the post-season tournament.
  • MSU’s Alan Anderson, who attended DeLaSalle HS in Minneapolis, was a prep teammate of Iowa football player Derrick Robinson.
  • Iowa assistant Coach Rich Walker is from Inkster, MI.
  • The two teams have met five common opponents, all in Big Ten play. Michigan State has defeated Northwestern (home), Purdue (home), Minnesota (away) and Michigan (home), while losing to Illinois (home). Iowa has defeated Minnesota (home) and Purdue (home), while losing to Michigan (home), Northwestern (away) and Illinois (away).

ALFORD REACHES 100 HAWKEYE WINS
Coach Steve Alford collected win No. 100 as Iowa’s head coach in the 73-63 victory over Air Force. Career victory No. 250 came in the 88-53 win over Centenary in early December. His career mark stands at 260-153. Alford is 104-76 at Iowa, moving into fifth place on the Iowa list for coaching victories.

Iowa’s top four coaches in career wins include Tom Davis (269), Lute Olson (168), Rollie Williams (139) and Bucky O’Connor (114).

IOWA STOPS INDIANA
Iowa used one of its best shooting games of the season and a strong defense to register a 72-57 win over Indiana. The Hawkeyes shot 57.8% from the field, including 58.3% from three-point range, while holding Indiana to 38.5% shooting.

Indiana twice led by three points in the opening minutes before a lay-up by Greg Brunner gave Iowa a 13-12 advantage with 14 minutes left in the half. Iowa never trailed again and led by as many as 10 points on three occasions in the opening half before holding a 35-28 advantage at the midway point.

The Hoosiers cut the margin to seven early in the second half, but could never get closer. Iowa’s biggest advantage, 17 points, came in the final minutes. Iowa’s solid shooting was stretched over the entire game, as the Hawkeyes hit 60.9% from the field in the first half and 54.5% over the final 20 minutes. Indiana, on the other hand, never found its shooting touch against an aggressive Iowa defense. The Hoosiers shot 39.3% in the first half and 37.5% in the second. Indiana shot just 21.4% (3-14) from three-point range.

Iowa collected 13 steals while forcing 16 Indiana turnovers and had 20 assists. The Hoosiers held a 31-27 rebounding advantage.

Pierre Pierce led Iowa with 25 points, hitting 9-14 field goal attempts. Jeff Horner added 16 points and nine assists for the Hawkeyes, while Brunner had 13 points and nine rebounds.

ILLINOIS WINS AT MSU
Michigan State had its four-game winning streak snapped Tuesday night in an 81-68 loss to top-ranked Illinois, as the Spartans lost at home for the first time in 11 games this season.

The Illini built a 41-33 halftime advantage before controlling the second half. The Illini shot 68.2% from the field in the second half in winning their 22nd straight game of the season. Illinois shot 56.9% for the game, including 54.2% (13-24) from three-point range. Illinois missed just seven field goal attempts in the second half, while the Spartans shot just 42.3% over the final 20 minutes. Despite the shooting differences, MSU closed the gap to just seven points in the closing minutes before Illinois once again pulled away.

The Illinois defense held MSU to 42.9% shooting for the game and forced 13 turnovers while collecting 12 steals. The Spartans were led by Alan Anderson with 14 points, while Shannon Brown and Paul Davis each scored 12. Maurice Ager added 10 points and eight rebounds and Kelvin Torbert scored 10 points as well.

NOT GETTING THE CLOSE ONES
Iowa, in seven Big Ten games, has lost two games in overtime and another by two points at home. The Hawkeyes lost to Michigan 63-65 to open Big Ten play, and have lost overtime games at top-ranked Illinois (68-73) and at Northwestern (74-75). Iowa’s three conference wins, all at home, have been by six, 14 and 15 points.

On the season, Iowa is 7-3 in games decided by 10 points or less, but the three losses have all come in conference action.

VERY PRODUCTIVE BENCH
Iowa reserved scored 54 points in the win over Indiana, with normal starters Greg Brunner, Jeff Horner and Pierre Pierce collecting all 54 points. Coach Steve Alford changed his line-up for the Indiana game and his three captains responded with strong games. Pierce had 25 points and five steals, Horner collected 16 points and had nine assists and Brunner had 13 points and nine rebounds.

The Indiana game marked the first non-start for Horner in 80 career games. Brunner had started 31 consecutive games now has 68 starts in 80 career games.

HAWKEYES AMONG NCAA LEADERS
As a team, Iowa ranks 10th nationally in blocked shots per game (6.2) and 25th in assists (16.7) per game Individually, center Erek Hansen is fourth in blocked shots (3.5) and guard Jeff Horner is 14th in three-point field goal percentage (46.8%) and 29th in assists per game (5.7).

HAWKEYES TIE BLOCK RECORD, AGAIN
Iowa set its second single-game record of the season in a loss to North Carolina and tied that record in wins over North Carolina-Greensboro and Saint Louis. The Hawkeyes blocked 12 shots in each of those games to break the previous record of 11, set in an 80-65 win at Drake on Jan. 4, 1993.

Junior center Erek Hansen led the way with five blocks against the North Carolina and UNC Greensboro, and he had seven in the win over Saint Louis.

The Hawkeyes have 124 blocked shots in 20 games. Iowa’s top three season totals for blocked shots include 165 in 1993, 161 in 1992 and 153 in 1991.

IOWA SETS FREE THROW MARK
Iowa set school and Carver-Hawkeye Arena records in its opening win over Western Illinois by making all 20 of its free throw attempts. Six Hawkeyes contributed to the record, with Pierre Pierce and Erek Hansen each making four. The previous best for a perfect free throw percentage (18-18) came in a win at Indiana in 1979. The previous record for Carver-Hawkeye Arena was 94.7%, when Iowa made 18-19 attempts vs. Wisconsin in 2001.

NEW FACES CONTRIBUTE EARLY
Several new faces have been big contributors in Iowa’s 20 games. The newcomers are averaging 22.4 points and 11.6 rebounds per outing.

Junior college transfer Doug Thomas scored 14 points and led Iowa with nine rebounds in the opening win over Western Illinois, and he added 10 rebounds vs. UNC Greensboro and Northwestern. Thomas added eight points and five rebounds vs. North Carolina, he had six rebounds in the win over Texas and five rebounds at Illinois. In the win over Purdue, Thomas matched his scoring high with 14 points and added nine rebounds.

Sophomore Adam Haluska has scored in double figures in 14 of 20 games, including a career-high 21 points vs. Drake and Texas Tech and 20 in a home win over Iowa State.

In the win at Drake, freshman Carlton Reed scored 14 points, while freshman Alex Thompson added five rebounds in the win over Texas Tech. Seth Gorney played a key defensive role and had five rebounds in a win over Minnesota and Reed had a career-best five assists in the win over Purdue and added eight points at Northwestern.

Newcomers contributed 31 points and 13 rebounds in the opening win, 37 points and 11 rebounds vs. North Carolina, 39 points and 15 rebounds in the win at Drake, 22 points and 15 rebounds vs. Centenary, 27 points and 19 rebounds vs. UNC Greensboro and 28 points and 19 rebounds vs. Purdue for their best showing in Big Ten play.

ANOTHER STRONG SCHEDULE
As has been the case in recent years, the Iowa schedule is very demanding. Eight of Iowa’s 13 non-conference games were against teams that advanced to post-season play a year ago. Iowa this season is 8-3 against teams that were in post-season play a year ago, including a 5-2 record vs. teams that were in the 2004 NCAA Tournament.

Iowa took part in the EA Sports Maui Invitational early in the season, defeating #11 Louisville and #13 Texas, while falling to #11 North Carolina. The Hawkeyes lost to top-ranked Illinois in overtime in their fourth game of the season against a ranked opponent. The non-conference slate also included Northern Iowa, Iowa State, Texas Tech and Air Force and Saint Louis, teams that participated in post-season play a year ago.

Iowa will play 16 games against teams that advanced to post-season play a year ago.

TWO STRAIGHT OVER RANKED TEAMS
Iowa’s back-to-back wins over Louisville and Texas marks the second time Iowa has won consecutive games against ranked opponents under Coach Steve Alford. The Hawkeyes, during the 2002-03 season, defeated 20th-ranked Michigan State 68-64 and 8th-ranked Illinois 68-61.

IOWA VS. RANKED FOES
Steve Alford has posted a 17-25 record against ranked opponents as Iowa’s head coach, including a 2-2 mark in 2004-05. Iowa, this season, has defeated 11th-ranked Louisville 76-71 and 13th-ranked Texas 82-80, with losses to 11th-ranked North Carolina and at No. 1 ranked Illinois, in overtime.

Alford’s Hawkeye teams are 5-10 when playing teams ranked in the top 10, including wins over top-ranked Connecticut (70-68 in 1999-00), 2nd-ranked Missouri (83-65 in 2001-02), 5th-ranked Ohio State (67-64 in 1999-00), 7th-ranked Illinois (78-62 in 2000-01) and 8th-ranked Illinois (68-61 in 2002-03).

The 10 losses to top 10 teams have been twice to top-ranked (Duke, 2001-02 and Illinois, 2004-05), once to 3rd-ranked (Illinois, 2000-01), twice to 4th-ranked (Michigan State, 1999-00 and 2000-01), twice to 5th-ranked (Tennessee, 2000-01 and Missouri, 2001-02), once to 9th-ranked (Kentucky, 2000-01) and twice to 10th-ranked (Michigan State, 2000 and Illinois, 2002).

In the 42 games against ranked teams, Alford and his Iowa team are 6-7 in home games, 8-8 at neutral sites and 3-10 when playing ranked teams in their home arena.

HANSEN ON BLOCKS CHART
Junior center Erek Hansen has collected 67 blocked shots in 19 games, moving among Iowa’s leaders in blocks for a season and career. A year ago Hansen blocked 40 shots in 22 games. The 67 blocks rank fifth best for a single season and his 107 career blocks ranks fifth among Iowa’s career leaders. Hansen had a career-best seven blocked shots vs. Iowa State and Saint Louis and he had six blocks in a win over Texas Tech and a loss to Michigan. He has blocked five or more shots in seven games, and he is averaging 6.1 points and 2.8 rebounds while shooting 45.1% from the field and 72.4% from the free throw line. He had a career-high 14 points vs. Northern Iowa and he had 11 points and six rebounds vs. Texas.

HORNER OFF TO FAST START
Junior guard Jeff Horner is off to a fast start, ranking among national leaders in assists and three-point field goals while averaging 13.6 points per game. Horner is averaging 5.7 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 1.7 steals per game. Horner had a career-high 27 points in the win over Texas and he led the Maui Invitational in scoring with 63 points in three games. He added 21 points, eight rebounds and six assists in a win at Drake.

Horner made 15-23 three-point attempts in the three games in Hawaii, moving into Iowa’s top 10 in both three-pointers and three-point attempts. Horner was named Big Ten Player of the Week for his play in Maui. The honor is the second of Horner’s career, as he earned it last Feb. 9 after leading Iowa to a double-overtime win at Indiana.

He added his first career scoring and assist double-double in the win over UNC Greensboro with 14 points and a career-best 11 assists. He added 16 points and nine rebounds in the win over Northern Iowa. Horner scored Iowa’s final five points in the last 95 seconds against the Panthers and he added 12 points and seven assists in a win over Iowa State.

He played 40 of 45 minutes at Northwestern, collecting seven points and six assists, with no turnovers, and he added 16 points, nine assists and just one turnover in the home win over Indiana.

He is shooting 44.8% from the field, 46.8% from three-point range and 74.7% from the free throw line. Horner was named to the all-tournament team at the Maui Invitational and he was co-MVP of Iowa’s Gazette Hawkeye Challenge.

BRUNNER WORKING THE BOARDS
Junior forward Greg Brunner is Iowa’s top returning rebounder from a year ago. He is averaging 8.2 rebounds for the season and 9.3 in conference games, ranking third in the Big Ten for all games and second in league games. Brunner ranks second among current Big Ten players with eight scoring and rebounding doubles-doubles this season and he is tied for first with 17 in his career.

Brunner had a career-high 28 points at Northwestern, hitting 11-17 field goals and 6-8 free throws, and he also had three blocked shots. Brunner has raised his career total to 73 blocks, moving in to 10th on Iowa’s list of career leaders.

Brunner had 13 points and 11 rebounds vs. Minnesota, 16 points and 11 rebounds in the overtime loss at Illinois and 13 points and nine rebounds vs. Indiana. Brunner, who ranked second in the Big Ten in rebounding last season, had a season-best 13 rebounds in the win over Iowa State and he has 11 rebounds in six games. He had 10 rebounds vs. Louisville, nine vs. UNC Greensboro and Indiana and eight on three occasions. Brunner has scored in double figures in 18 games. He is shooting 53.7% from the field and 70.7% from the foul line. He was named to the all-tournament team of Iowa’s Gazette Hawkeye Challenge.

HALUSKA HITS NEW HIGH
Sophomore Adam Haluska scored a career-high 21 points in wins over Texas Tech and Drake as he has scored in double figures in 14 of 20 games. Playing against his former school, he added 20 points in a win over Iowa State, hitting 4-8 treys. Haluska had 19 points in the loss to North Carolina and 17 points vs. UNC Greensboro. He matched his career-high of four assists in the win over Northern Iowa and played an outstanding defensive game. His best game in Big Ten play came in the win over Minnesota, where he scored 15 points and collected two steals. He added 12 points, six rebounds and two steals at Illinois and he had 12 points and two assists at Northwestern. In his first season at Iowa, Haluska is shooting 46.3% from the field and 80.5% from the free throw line while averaging 12.4 points and 3.5 rebounds per game.

THOMAS HELPS ON THE GLASS
Junior Doug Thomas is making a major contribution to Iowa’s rebounding efforts, as he is third on the team with an average of 4.6 per game. Thomas has collected 20 rebounds in Iowa’s last three games, matching a career-best with 10 vs. Northwestern. He had nine rebounds and 14 points in a win over Purdue. Thomas had nine rebounds in his first game as a Hawkeye and added a season-best 10 in a win over UNC Greensboro. Thomas had six points and six rebounds in the win over Texas Tech, he had five rebounds in the overtime loss at Illinois and he had eight points vs. Indiana. The 14 points vs. Purdue matched his best total of the season. Thomas is averaging five points while shooting 58.2% from the field and 70% from the foul line.

SCORING BY HALVES
Iowa has outscored its opponents 700-627 in the first half and 826-714 in the second half, and the Hawkeyes have been outscored 17-11 in two overtime periods. Iowa has led at halftime in 13 of 20 games and the Hawkeyes have outscored their opponent in the second half in 14 games.

HAWKEYE TIDBITS

  • Iowa has played two overtime games, losing in single overtime at Illinois and at Northwestern. Iowa was 2-0 in overtime games a year ago, defeating Louisville in single overtime on a neutral court and winning at Indiana in two overtimes.
  • Iowa suffered consecutive Big Ten losses for the first time since 2003 when it dropped games to Michigan and Ohio State. In 2003, Iowa lost at Indiana (in OT) on Mar. 1 and at Michigan State Mar. 5. This marks the first season Iowa has lost its first two conference games of the season since 1993-94, when the Hawkeyes lost their first four league games.
  • Iowa’s contest at Drake was the only true road game for the Hawkeyes in non-conference play. Iowa played three neutral site games at the EA Sports Maui Invitational and played Texas Tech at the United Center in Chicago.
  • In the 70-63 win over Iowa State, Iowa held the Cyclones without a three-point basket as ISU missed all six of its attempts. That marks the first time an Iowa opponent did not make at least one three-point basket since early in the 2001-02 season, when Iowa State missed all eight of its three-point attempts in a 78-53 loss to Iowa in Ames.
  • As a team, Iowa set two Gazette Hawkeye Challenge tournament records and tied a third, in a win over UNC Greensboro. The Hawkeyes set a tournament record and tied their own school record with 12 blocked shots. That record was set earlier this season in a loss to North Carolina. Iowa also shot 57.9% (11-19) from three-point range to set a tournament record and the 11 three-point field goals tied a tournament mark.
  • Iowa attempted more free throws than its opponent in its first 15 games of the season before Minnesota (30-29) and Illinois (31-12) both had more attempts than the Hawkeyes in consecutive games. In games vs. Northwestern and Indiana, the free throw attempts have been equal. In two of the last four games, both overtime losses, Iowa has not been to the free throw line in the opening half.
  • Iowa is 12-1 when scoring between 70-89 points and 6-0 when holding its opponent to less than 60 points.
  • Iowa’s two overtime losses are the only time in 13 games the Hawkeyes have lost when having more assists than the opponent.
  • Iowa’s home loss to Michigan is the only time in 13 games the Hawkeyes have lost when having fewer turnovers and the only time in 11 games they have lost when collecting more steals.
  • Iowa has had four players or more score in double figures in 12 of 20 games, with a season-best six players in the win over Western Illinois.
  • Iowa is 1-0 when six players score in double figures, 1-0 when five players score 10 points or more, 8-2 when four reach double figures, 3-2 with three in double figures and 2-1 when two are in double figures.
  • Iowa has four players averaging between 12.4 and 17.8 points per game and four players averaging between 4.5 and 8.2 rebounds per outing.
  • Iowa is 12-1 when leading at halftime and 3-4 when trailing at intermission.
  • Iowa is 9-3 when controlling the opening tip and 6-2 when not controlling the tip.
  • Iowa is 7-3 in games decided by 10 points or less, including 0-2 in overtime.
  • Under Steve Alford, Iowa is 32-6 when shooting at least 50% from the field, including 7-1 this season.
  • North Carolina and Northern Iowa are the only Iowa opponents to shoot over 50% from the field this season. Last season, Iowa was 0-5 when its opponent shot at least 50% from the field.

SEEKING FIVE STRAIGHT IN `05
Iowa is seeking a fifth straight winning season, a streak that would match the second longest consecutive winning seasons record in Iowa basketball history. Iowa’s longest streak of consecutive winning seasons is seven, from 1950 through 1956. Pops Harrison, Bucky O’Connor and Rollie Williams all coached the Hawkeyes during those years. Only a 10-10 record in 1949 kept Iowa from 13 consecutive winning seasons (1944-56).

Lute Olson coached Iowa to five straight winning seasons from 1979-83, George Raveling and Tom Davis combined to coach Iowa to winning seasons from 1985-89 and Davis coached Iowa to winning seasons from 1995-99.

CAPTAINS NAMED FOR 2005
Iowa’s captains for the season include juniors Greg Brunner and Jeff Horner. Brunner, a native of Charles City, started 26 of 29 games last season. His 8.2 rebounds per game were a team best and ranked second in the Big Ten. Horner, a Mason City native, has started 79 of 80 career games over the past three seasons. He led the team in assists in each of the last two seasons while also averaging 13 points and 5.3 rebounds a year ago.

THE RETURNING CAST
Iowa returns three starters and six lettermen from 2004. Those six returning lettermen last season scored over 1,200 points and totaled over 600 rebounds. The six players, in 2004, scored 60.1% of Iowa’s points, had 56.9% of the rebounds, 67.5% of the assists, 64.4% of the blocked shots and 45.2% of the steals.

In 29 games, a sophomore led Iowa in scoring 26 times and a sophomore was the top rebounder in 22 games. The Hawkeyes return their statistical leader from last season in all categories, with the exception of steals (Brody Boyd). The 13-man squad includes one senior, five juniors, three sophomores and four freshmen. The roster includes nine Iowans, plus one player from California, Indiana, Ohio and Texas.

NEWCOMERS GAIN ATTENTION
Iowa’s class of newcomers includes seven players. That list includes juniors Doug Thomas and Justin Wieck, sophomore Adam Haluska and freshmen J.R. Angle, Seth Gorney, Carlton Reed and Alex Thompson.

The group is ranked the second best incoming class in the Big Ten and 20th in the nation by Hoop Scoop in the June issue of Basketball Times.

Street and Smith’s ranks the group as the top incoming class in the Big Ten and names Thompson on the all-Midwest team on its list of Top 100 Freshman.

Lindy’s rates the incoming class as 14th best nationally and lists Haluska fourth among its top 10 transfers.

Athlon Sport’s also lists Haluska among the top transfers in the nation and rates the overall class fourth best in the Big Ten.

HALK TALK WITH Steve Alford
Fans of the University of Iowa basketball program may join Iowa Coach Steve Alford and radio announcer Gary Dolphin each week during the season for the “Hawk Talk with Steve Alford” radio call-in show. The show takes place each week at Carlos O’Kelly’s Mexican Café in Iowa City. The show airs from 6-7:30 p.m. on the following dates: Feb. 7, 14, 21, 28; and Mar. 7.

IOWA ON THE TUBE
Every Iowa game throughout the 2004-05 will be televised. Iowa appeared on national cable television (ESPN and ESPN2) in three games in the Maui Invitational and in games vs. Texas Tech (ESPN2) and at Illinois (ESPN). Iowa games not selected for national coverage will be televised regionally by ESPN Plus, while several conference games are scheduled to be carried throughout the Big Ten Conference viewing area as part of the Big Ten regional network agreement with ESPN Plus.

AFTER THIS
Iowa travels to Wisconsin Feb. 9 and returns home to host Northwestern Feb. 12. Both games start at 7:05 p.m.